Assefa Mehretu

Dr. Mehretu has been Professor of Geography at Michigan State University since 1977. Originally from Ethiopia, Mehretu has taught and conducted research in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau and Zimbabwe in collaboration with the World Bank and as a consultant for the U.S. Agency for International Development. His research interests include African development, regional development and theories and patterns of socioeconomic marginalization in the U.S. with particular reference to Michigan. Dr. Mehretu has served as Associate Director of MSU’s African Studies Center and as Director of the Rome Social Science Program in Italy since 1992. He is the recipient of research fellowships from the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, and various MSU grants to support fieldwork in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe. Dr. Assefa has made many scholastic contributions to the discipline of Geography including books, book chapters, journal articles and segments for various encyclopedias. He is the father of renowned Artist Julie Mehretu.